As Jamie Oliver wraps up filming 'Food Revolution,' a show that promotes healthy eating, hospital donates $80,000 to fund assessment and overhaul of menus of West Virginia county's 28 public schools. Hospital also donates $50,000 to keep chef's teaching kitchen open. And: Naked Chef isn't a diet cop; he's about scratch cooking, which means avoiding processed and fast food, learning pride of ownership, encouraging sparks of creativity and finding reasons to gather family and friends in one place (click 'See also').

In 2008, nearly 17 million children - more than one in five - were living in U.S. households in which food at times ran short, report shows. Number of children who sometimes were outright hungry rose from nearly 700,000 to almost 1.1 million. Among people of of all ages, nearly 15 percent last year did not consistently have adequate food; shortages worst among single mothers raising children alone. Feds' anti-hunger efforts include using $85 million to experiment with ways to get food to more children in summers, and next push is renewal of main law covering food, nutrition for children (click 'See also' to see Food Research and Action Center list of child nutrition bills).

Replacing snacks with fresh fruit near cash register, offering children choice between two vegetables rather than simply requiring carrots, and accepting only cash for dessert changed buying patterns at school lunch, researchers learn. And: Items displayed prominently, at eye level, or first in line tend to be chosen more often than other items (click 'See also'). Compared with students with unrestricted food debit cards, those using cards that restricted choices to more healthful items ate significantly less added sugar, total fat, saturated fat, and caffeine and consumed fewer calories.

Lawmaker wants Congress to see whether there are adequate protections from e.coli for school meals. He also asked investigators to compare safety, quality of ground beef available to schools with that available to restaurants, other commercial buyers. Probe earlier found that USDA didn't always make sure states and schools were notified promptly about recalled food distributed through the federal school lunch and breakfast programs, which serve 30 million students.

Children's tastes have become more sophisticated, yet at most restaurants, kids' menus are the same, plus they're often high in fat, sodium, and sugar - with no vegetable. Then there's lack of shared experience, what eating is all about. Two most important predictors after innate sweets preference are exposure and role modeling, says expert. Then there's reinforcement of giving children the same menu items over and over, with toys, crayons, games, which forms foundation of what they come to expect when going out for meals.

Nutrition experts warn that sugary processed foods Chicago Public Schools provides to children eating free breakfast make them sleepy and relaxed, and because such foods are digested quickly, children feel hungry well before lunchtime, making concentration difficult. Visits to schools show students pairing doughnuts with Frosted Flakes, syrupy French toast and juice. Health advocates say that's what happens when adults allow children as young as 5 to choose between oatmeal or Kellogg's Froot Loops. Chartwells-Thompson, city schools main caterer, defended brand promotion. And: Cut calories, add vegetables to school lunches, panel says (click 'See also')

In effort to slow spread of swine flu, new legislation would guarantee five paid sick days for workers with contagious illness who are sent home by their employers. School cafeteria workers, restaurant employees, others in contact with public and without paid sick leave (click 'See also') otherwise would go to work with H1N1 and spread virus, says bill's sponsor. 39 percent of private-sector workers do not receive paid sick days, while among the bottom 25 percent of wage earners, 63 percent do not. Bill would apply to businesses with 15 or more employees.

Leading food thinkers want Canada to create national, federally funded school food program as centerpiece for national food policy, arguing that it could address children's soaring obesity rates, poverty, learning challenges that come with poor nutrition. School food, they say, can teach policy makers to harness power of food to improve health, environment, agriculture, local economies. Lunch program in Scotland, with local procurement strategy, delivers fresh, unprocessed ingredients for school meals, pumped $466,460 into struggling region, reduced carbon footprint of each school.

Feds undecided on whether to buy $50 million of pork to support industry; producers ask that it go for food assistance programs. And: Nation's schoolchildren are fed, in large part, by over-produced agricultural commodities that are promised a market by Farm Bill (click 'See also'). USDA buys hundreds of millions of pounds of excess beef, pork, milk and other meat and dairy products to bolster or normalize dropping prices, then dumps raw commodities into National School Lunch Program. Nearly half of U.S. children forecast to be overweight or obese by 2010.

Panel calls for calorie, sodium limits in USDA school lunch program, plus weekly amounts for dark green and orange vegetables, grains, and animal protein/dairy for each age group. Fruits, vegetables are not interchangeable, it said. It also calls for replacement of refined grains with whole grains, and for low-fat or skim milk. Recommendations reflect 2005 Dietary Guidelines for Americans; standards for school meals haven't been updated since 1995. Institute of Medicine panel says feds must increase reimbursement to fund changes.

Eating a hamburger should not be a death-defying experience. Too often it is (click 'See also'). Ground beef is major part of American diet. Government needs to quickly fill safety gaps in food production. Congress, USDA should make it illegal to discourage additional testing for pathogens, must give USDA more authority to recall foods or to shut down plants that keep sending out contaminated products. Administration should nominate strong undersecretary for food safety. That vacancy leaves a huge gap.

Some of the 226 students who got diarrhea and other salmonella-related symptoms after peanut product recall 'may have consumed the (tainted) products in school,' USDA school lunch recall audit shows. Recall notifications were delayed - sometimes more than a week, report says. Delay also cited on largest beef recall in U.S. history, which involved abuse of sick and injured cattle at California's Westland/Hallmark Meat Co. (click 'See also'). School meals program serves 30 million students.

Lawmakers ask USDA to buy $100 million more pork - beyond the $30 million already announced - to protect industry from its economic troubles. Lawmakers say purchase could go for federal food assistance programs. And: Feds should be improving food served to children, not loading school meals with more pork and its saturated fat, cholesterol and sodium, writes dietitian and nutrition director of activist group (click 'See also'). 'We've got to stop using school lunches as a dumping ground for high-fat meat products,' she says.

Though providing a tasty school meal can increase attendance, boost student focus and improve lifelong eating habits, federal deficit makes school lunch reform funding unlikely. But Revolution Foods turns out thousands of made-from-scratch meals that meet USDA standards for about $3 each (feds pay $2.68). Company shuns high-fructose corn syrup, serves only hormone- and antibiotic-free meat; it cuts deals with purveyors, offers payment plans for schools. Skeptic says that charter schools understand link between nutrition and education, but worries that taking on public school bureaucracies will be difficult. And: Businesses help close school meal funding gap (click 'See also').

Many advocates for better, healthier school food call for return to cooking real, fresh food, but barely half of New York's 1,385 school kitchens have enough cooking and fire-suppression equipment to allow it. Plus, staff isn't trained to do much more than steam frozen vegetables, dig ravioli out of a six-pound can or heat frozen chicken patties. In one school, parents declared victory when they persuaded cooks to boil water and cook pasta. One bonus is that children are happier at lunch, principal notes.

Tens of thousands of people sickened annually by e. coli O157:H7, mostly through hamburger. Ground beef blamed for 16 outbreaks in last three years, including one from Cargill that left 22-year-old children's dance teacher paralyzed from waist down. Hamburger patty her mother grilled for her was mix of slaughterhouse trimmings plus scraps from Nebraska, Texas, Uruguay and from company that processes fatty trimmings and adds ammonia to kill bacteria. In weeks before teacher's patty was made, records show Cargill was violating its own ground beef handling procedures. Cargill, which supplies beef for school lunches, has revenue of $116.6 billion last year and is country's largest company.

More than 15 million people in U.S. now unemployed, and more are working part-time jobs for less pay, or have given up looking for work. New Jersey resident, a year after losing job, has $800 left in savings account, six more weeks of $379 unemployment checks. She's paring expenses - she tries to eat less. And: Teachers note that impoverished students are distracted from learning; 'It's hard to focus on algebra when you're hungry,' says advocate (click 'See also').

New website hopes to provide schools, restaurants, institutions one-stop shopping for fresh produce from many nearby farms at once. That means more local food on more plates - and expanded marketplace for farmers. Founders launched site (click 'See also') in San Francisco area last spring; owners plan to expand to seven other regions around country.

Compass Group, which buys 10 million pounds of tomatoes annually and operates 10,000 cafeterias, agrees with Florida's Coalition of Immokalee Workers to buy winter tomatoes only from growers that pay fair wage, offer good working conditions. And: After Chartwells, a Compass Group subsidiary, takes over Connecticut school food service from Sodexho, some workers say their hours were curtailed; one says cutback made her ineligible for insurance (click 'See also'). Others say they lost paid sick leave, holiday leave, were transferred with little notice and had problems receiving paychecks.

In last 10 years, toxins found in drinking water of public and private schools in all 50 states, but problem has gone largely unmonitored by feds. EPA lacks authority to require testing for all schools; it does not specifically monitor incoming state data on school water quality. Tainting most apparent at schools with wells. Schools with unsafe water represent small percentage of nation's 132,500 schools; EPA says violations spiked because of stricter standards for arsenic, disinfectants, other toxins. And: It's time to ban arsenic from chicken feed (click 'See also').

Click 'See also' for video of students pleading for better school food.

Buy-local trend, which has popularized farmers' markets, farm harvest subscriptions reaches some school lunch programs. Farm to school initiative started at a few schools in California, Florida, North Carolina in late 1990s; USDA says 2,000-plus such programs are active in about 40 states. Programs bring fresh produce into schools, gives local small-farm owners chance to break into new market, and lets students meet farmers who visit schools and explain their work. And: San Francisco students make video pleading for better school food (click 'See also').

USDA's new farm-to-community initiative is mostly symbol. Backbone of program is a new website for agency's existing 20-odd local-food support programs, plus extra $50 million to get more local produce into school cafeterias, as well as relaxing of rules on shipping meat, poultry across state lines. But most programs were made law in 2008 Farm Bill, which will dole out $35 billion in subsidies to agribusinesses for corn, wheat, soybeans. Until that changes, this is just talk.

Prominent doctors, scientists, policy makers say soda tax could be powerful weapon in reducing obesity, as cigarette taxes help curb smoking. Tax of penny per ounce on soft drinks, energy drinks, sports beverages, many juices and iced teas would raise $14.9 billion in its first year. Soda research shows that for every 10 percent rise in price, consumption falls 8 to 10 percent. Expert says tax is justified in part because obesity, diabetes often treated with public funds through Medicaid, Medicare.

If H1N1/swine flu closes North Carolina city school system, workers will deliver lunches and snacks to children eligible for free and reduced-price lunches - nearly half of Asheville students. Child nutrition director hopes that planning for flu crisis will smooth way to summer meal delivery. And: Nationally, at least 18.5 million low-income students expected for school lunches, 8.5 million-plus expected for breakfast (click 'See also').

California charter school halts printing of student paper that reports lunch vendor is Christian company whose mission is to 'serve God.' Company's religious stance is on its website (click 'See also'); principal says company's affiliation was part of reason for delay, but also, a school official had been misquoted.

Schools participating in USDA National School Lunch Program, breakfast program now required to undergo two safety inspections each school year, rather than one. Schools are required to post most recent inspection report in visible location and to release copy of report to public upon request.

Public has right to know names of donors to trade groups lobbying on bills before Congress, federal appeals panel rules. And: Congress due to update, reauthorize Child Nutrition Act, which includes $9.3 billion National School Lunch Program and sets school food policy (click 'See also').

By not addressing food system reform in health care reform, government is putting itself in position of subsidizing both the costs of treating Type 2 diabetes and consumption of high-fructose corn syrup. One of the leading products of American food industry has become patients for American health care industry. When terms like 'pre-existing conditions' vanish, relationship between health insurance industry and food industry will change. When health insurers can no longer evade costs of treating results of American diet, food system reform movement - farm policy, food marketing, school lunches - will gain powerful, wealthy ally.

Linda Rivera, once teachers' aide and always in motion, now in a mute state; 4-year-old girl partially paralyzed are among 80 people sickened by eating e.coli-tainted raw cookie dough, feds believe. As recalls cause public to lose confidence in food safety, lawmakers scramble; Nestlé resumes supplying chilled dough to supermarkets. And: Cargill slaughterhouse that just recalled 826,000 pounds of beef was slapped with animal handling citations last year after review of processors that supply USDA National School Lunch Program (click 'See also').

September issue of magazine examines meaning behind 'food democracy.' Eating local is part of it, but more basically, it requires transformation of food industry, so workers, consumers can control what they produce and eat - and food is safe and nutritious. It also suggests fair access to crop land, fair return for farmers, laborers. It implies economic rules that encourage safeguarding soil, water, wildlife. Alice Waters (click 'See also'), other leading figures of food movement reflect on how food democracy can be achieved.

New nonprofits that aggregate and deliver local produce are popping up across U.S., could be missing link between supply of and demand for products grown nearby. Farmers appreciate delivery consolidation, ease of building relationships with bigger buyers. Among customers are elementary schools, independent grocers, restaurants. In Charlottesville, VA, negotiations are under way to sell to University of Virginia dining services, run by Aramark.

New Jersey public schools scramble to sign poor students up for free or reduced-price lunch; new funding formula matches lunch participation with eligibility for additional $5,000 per student in supplemental tutoring. Idea is that children who qualify for free meals have greater educational needs overall. And: In June, unemployment figures reached 14.3 percent in Newark and 18.4 percent in Trenton (click 'See also').

At least 18.5 million low-income students expected for school lunches and 8.5 million-plus expected for breakfast. If rising family homelessness, steady growth in food stamp program are indications, however, enrollment in school meals could swell well beyond expectations. And: New York senator proposes expansion of free school meals to all children living under 185 percent of federal poverty line in certain high-cost areas, or $40,792 for a family of four (click 'See also').

Whole Foods Market joins Ann Cooper, chef, to improve school lunches. 'This is the social justice issue of our time, and schools have no money to help solve the problem,' says Renegade Lunch Lady. Co-president of upscale grocery store, chef plan to go to Washington to try to persuade lawmakers to improve the federal school meals programs in Child Nutrition Act, up for renewal this fall.

Anyone who smoked in an elementary-school hallway today would be thrown out. But if you served an obesity-inducing, federally financed meal to kindergarten student, you would fit right in. Parents are working longer, and eating takeout; real price of fruits, vegetables has risen 40-plus percent in 30 years; soda prices have fallen 33 percent. Solutions to obesity epidemic involve civic - even political - responsibility. They depend on the kind of collective action that helped cut smoking rates nearly in half.

Huge woks full of vitamin-fortified spicy eggplant, ground pork and vegetables pay off at Beijing school for children of migrant workers. Children show longer attention spans, higher marks on standardized test, helping transform what once was nutritional experiment into part of school's mission to educate previously ignored population. And: Analysis had shown that the middle-schoolers in Daxing were deficient in vitamins A and B, and also had iron-deficiency anemia (click 'See also').

With upcoming reauthorization of the Child Nutrition Act, which regulates National School Lunch Program, Congress must reform policies that encourage children to eat unhealthy foods and that contribute to obesity epidemic, rising health-care costs. In 2007, the government allocated majority of child nutrition funds to meat, dairy, and eggs, only about 20 percent to fruits, vegetables. And: Primer on the bill, and how to get involved (click 'See also').

Challenge for Michelle Obama and staff is to craft strategy that uses her clout to make how we eat an integral part of national health-care debate. In September, during Congressional debate over funding for child nutrition programs including school meals, staffers say First Lady will continue to link personal to political by gardening and by cooking - and by eating with her family and with students.

Solutions to myriad problems with industrial food system aren't simple, and they may mean paying more for what we eat. But that could mean costs savings for fewer cases of diabetes, other diet-related diseases. We have power, the film, 'Food, Inc.' points out: 'You can vote to change the system three times a day.'

"Food, Inc.," a mind-boggling, heart-rending, stomach-churning expose on food industry, makes case with methodical, relentless urgency of muckrakers trying to radicalize - or rouse - a dozing populace. And: Film shows we're living in a simulacrum, fed by machines run by larger machines with names like Monsanto, Perdue, Tyson that make everything (click 'See also'). We humans can win, but we should hurry, before Monsanto makes a time machine and sends back a Terminator to get rid of Eric Schlosser, Michael Pollan.

Instead of shutting down Philadelphia's Universal Feeding program for impoverished schools, Pennsylvania senator urges Obama to extend it to all cities, also vows to include the application-free lunch program in child-nutrition bill reauthorization. If that doesn't work, veteran lawmaker vows to use his power on senate agriculture panel to expand program.

USDA official complains that it 'isn't fair' that Philadelphia has only program allowing more than 120,000 students in poor schools to eat free meals without having to fill out paper applications, so agency plans to kill program. Tom Vilsack, now USDA head, had praised program as senator and recommended expanding it. New paperwork could cost district $800,000 yearly. And: Food stamp costs likely will rise by 14 percent in fiscal 2010 and could top $60 billion (click 'See also').

More children rely on schools for two meals daily as schools struggle to balance food budgets because of higher costs, decline in paying customers. Meanwhile, concern grows over nutrition needs of students after school and during summer. And: USDA supporting Bush administration edict to end well-regarded Philadelphia school breakfast and lunch program, source says (click 'See also').

To aid global food security needs, Obama asks Congress to double financial support for agricultural development to $1 billion in 2010. Plan calls for providing U.S. food aid, capacity building, developmental assistance. He called for doubling funding to $200 million for USDA's McGovern-Dole International Food for Education and Child Nutrition Program, which helps support education, child development, and food security for some of the world's poorest children (click 'See also').

Tony Geraci served 82,000 local peaches to Baltimore students on the first day of school last fall; for some children, it was their first taste of a fresh peach.

Tony Geraci runs Baltimore schools food service and campaigns for it, renovating old farm as incubator for gardens he wants at each of 200-plus schools, planning for student-run cafes with goal of involving students in food at every step. Students deserve to eat delicious, healthful meals; those meals help students learn, says chef and former chicken nuggets broker turned radical. About 74 percent of 83,000 students qualify for free or reduced-price meals. And: 'We've lost an entire generation of children to obesity and poor nutrition, and we're about to lose another one if we don't reach our hands into the fire and pull them back out and start doing the right thing,' he says (click 'See also').

Despite progress in providing more healthful foods in schools through federal meals program, junk foods abound outside the program. New legislation to give USDA authority over all food sold at schools should be supported to help stem epidemic of childhood obesity, diet-related diseases. And: Take this quiz to see if you know junk food (click 'See also').

Lunch ladies in San Francisco Bay Area put serious cooking skills to test - with nary a nugget in sight. Competitors had two hours to plate a prize-winner; with 30 minutes left, they cinched up their hair nets and turned up the heat. 'Plenty of time,' one cook sneered, having spent a lifetime staring down hungry adolescents.

As politicians debate bonuses and bailouts, surely we can agree that improving children's health is best investment for nation's future. Congress should ensure that USDA selects foods for school lunches based on current scientific evidence about role of diet in health. And: Federal nutrition programs are feeble whisper against howling scream of trash food marketing, writes columnist (click 'See also').

As interest grows in farm-to-school programs, Michigan, Wisconsin educators pounce on stimulus grants as chance to buy equipment to prep fresh fruits, vegetables. Both states will alert schools; Wisconsin will post list of types of equipment to consider, set up review panel that includes advocates experienced in farm-to-school programs and experts in fresh-food service equipment. And: Improving meal quality to meet dietary guidelines among goals of stimulus (click 'See aso').

Obama proposes $1 billion a year increase for child nutrition programs including school lunches. Plan includes better program access, better nutritional quality of school meals, expanding nutrition research, better oversight. About 32 million children eat lunch daily through National School Lunch Program; 8 million eat school breakfast. And: Nutrition bill up for renewal (click 'See also').

School lunch is learning opportunity for students, says Arthur Agatston, cardiologist, researcher, South Beach Diet creator. Leisurely meals in positive atmosphere provide foundation for better learning. Children will eat healthier food if supported by curriculum, tastings, gardens. 'School is where you have the kids. School can be the most efficient way to spread good habits.'

Ties between feds and commodities industry, abetted by poor nutritional choices made by state and local food service officials, results in chicken nugget-pizza menus at school. With renewal of Child Nutrition and WIC Reauthorization Act, we must improve nutrition and quality of school food requirements; weaken school lunches-commodities markets link; and educate school officials, regulators and public. And: Primer on upcoming bill (click 'See also').

USDA bought 32 truckloads of roasted peanuts and peanut butter for its school lunch program as internal tests on product at Peanut Corporation of America showed salmonella taint. Scandal exposes an array of failures in government's systems. And: In early 2008, Hallmark/Westland beef recall was flashpoint in debate over meat safety and quality of USDA school lunches (click 'See also').

Parents in UK pressured by government to pack more fruits, vegetables in children's lunch boxes, and while they're not happy about it, new research shows it seems to be working. Food manufacturers, too, taking the hint, developing products to make effort easier.

In addition to counseling, tutoring, full stomachs now mandatory at school reeling from violent incidents. Students greeted daily by table of sandwiches, fruit, bagels or pizza and sometimes chocolate milk; extra food is saved for hungry children after gym or at lunch. Students are calmer, happier when they're not hungry, says new principal. And they know the school cares for them.

After obesity flunks 47,447 aspiring soldiers in four years, Army recruiter lobbies for formal diet, fitness plan. Obesity is biggest challenge for potential military enlistees. And: During World War II, aspiring servicemen flunked, but for undernourishment, a national emergency that prompted 1946 National School Lunch Act, which guaranteed hot lunch for every schoolchild (click 'See also').

Short on funds, New York governor turns call for change into anti-obesity measures: Soft drink tax, posting calorie counts in chain restaurants, adding markets to poor neighborhoods, banning junk food in schools. Professor says proposals take health care outside of medical sector and are way of cost-shifting that doesn't recognize obstacles - no sidewalks, time deprivation.

Relatives, activists outraged over Albuquerque decision to serve only cold cheese sandwiches to pupils with unpaid lunch bills. Unpaid bill is adult problem, and cheese sandwiches stigmatize hungry children, they say. School says it began year with $140,000 in lunch debt and in first five days of new plan, received $28,000 in payments.

Virginia six-year-old, motivated by school breakfast, gym class, drives his mother's car 10 miles toward school after he misses bus. First-grader, who passed cars on a two-lane road and may have been standing to drive before he hit a utility pole (he was unhurt), told sheriff he had trained on Grand Theft Auto, Monster Truck Jam video games. Parents charged with felony child endangerment.

Students at schools within walking distance of fast food outlets more likely to be overweight and eat fewer fruits and vegetables, study of 500,000 California adolescents shows. Eateries serve as hangout and linked to greatly increased consumption of soft drinks. And: Sodas containing high-fructose corn syrup may contribute to development of diabetes, particularly in children (click 'See also').

Public health advocates, pointing to diet-related disease epidemic and record levels of food stamp use, look to skirt paternalism but to link food assistance, school meals to good nutrition. Program that doubles value of food stamps and fruit and vegetable vouchers of low-income mothers, seniors at farmers' markets in San Diego is instant hit - sales soared by more than 200 percent.

Revolution Foods, created by two business school classmates to address 'huge, gaping unmet needs' in school nutrition options, expands beyond Bay Area to Los Angeles. USDA-reimbursable meals mostly go to charter schools, plus preschools, private schools. Founders' next mission: Bringing those meals to public school districts.

In Long Island, government pays district $2.57 per free lunch, $2.17 per reduced-price lunch (which usually cost students 25 cents), and 24 cents per full-priced meal. New York pays 5.99 cents for free and full-priced meals, and 19.81 cents for reduced-price meals. School boards dictate meal prices; average price was $1.66. Beyond full-priced meals, major money maker is sale of 'a la carte' items - snacks, or meal alternatives.

Long Island school district wins award for using USDA ingredients in innovative school lunch dishes: feta-cheddar salad, tomato bisque, soft tortillas stuffed with chopped turkey, mozzarella, garlic, celery and carrots. District's board increased lunch prices from $1.60 to $2 last year, and to $2.50 this year to facilitate better food.

We must commit to 'edible education,' by making lunch a mandatory part of curriculum. We need to teach all primary-school students basics of growing, cooking food and then enjoying it at shared meals. That means planting gardens in every primary school, building fully equipped kitchens, training lunchroom ladies who can once again cook, and teach cooking. We should immediately increase school-lunch spending per pupil by $1 a day to underwrite shift to real food freshly prepared.

To progress on health care crisis, energy independence and climate change, new president must wean food system from fossil fuel and return it to diet of sunshine. Next, new policy must strive for healthful diet for all; improve reliance, safety and security of food supply; promote regional food economies; and reframe agriculture as part of solution to environmental problems.

Children eat more fresh fruits and vegetables if schools give them a nudge with repeated exposure through taste-testing, study shows. Successful methods: teacher training with a tested curriculum and parent events; teacher's use of curriculum without parents; and cooperative extension educator teaching in classrooms.

Adding whole grains, fruits and vegetables to elementary school lunches raised academic performance of students over two years and lowered their weight and blood pressure, cardiologist reports. Healthier Options for Public Schoolchildren program (click 'See also') also promotes good nutrition through edible school gardens, assemblies, class activities and with adults as role models.

Many school cafeterias in New York state aren't routinely inspected for food safety because of short-staffed health departments, disparity between federal, local laws. Skewing records: Some schools have no kitchen; some inspections aren't recorded. One in five public school cafeterias in Monroe County failed to meet health standards in last two years.

After school lunch program comes up short by $418,876, veteran bookkeeper negotiates guilty plea, 18-month jail sentence and restitution. New Hampshire school will install new computer, in part, to aid in monitoring cash flow.

Raising good little eaters begins with serving variety of foods. Six strategies: Involve them in cooking, encourage a taste of new foods but remain neutral in face of refusal, stock only healthful foods and give children free access, teach good dietary habits by your own balanced diet, dress up the vegetables, and serve a new food 15 times before concluding the child won't eat it.

Bates College graduate donates $2.5 million to expand alma mater's use of organic, local foods, sparking yearlong initiative on sustainable food. Instead of 22 percent, college will now spend 28 percent of its yearly food budget on such foods. President says donation acknowledges financial cost of doing the right nutritional and ethical thing.

In race to be green, colleges try eco-friendly no-tray policy and students with big appetites find heaping helping of complaints. Multiple plates are cumbersome to carry, extra trips for seconds are disruptive, and it takes longer to clear the table. Another school replaces disposable foam trays for plastic containers that can be returned dirty, or replaced for $5.

Considering child's all-day diet helps parents find balance between nutrition nirvana and what will actually be eaten from school lunch box. 'It has to be something they will like, something their friends at the lunch table won't gross out on,' says author. Suggestions: pizza with vegetable toppings, PB&J on oatmeal bread, fruit and yogurt, pasta with vegetables and cheese.

Skyrocketing food, fuel prices coupled with home foreclosures push more children into homelessness, poverty and qualify them for subsidized school lunches as states cut school budgets and schools raise lunch prices. Estimates show an additional 283,000 students will be eligible for free lunches this year, in addition to last year's 14.9 million students.

At least 18 states recently have passed laws encouraging schools to use local produce.

Linking local farm produce to school lunches, while more expensive and more work, pays off in better food that more students eat, food service directors say. In turn, better food leads more children to sign up for school lunches, which offsets costs. And school purchases nurture regional agricultural economies.

Program linking public schools with 12 Colorado farms will be on display at Democratic National Convention as example of how to cut climate change. Farm to school effort supplies grass-fed ground beef, plus products including milled flour, micro-greens, vegetables and fruit.

Pennsylvania school district buys $30,000 scanning system to identify lunch customers by photographed fingers. Officials say new identification system minimizes stigma associated with reduced-price and free lunches and reduce money-handling, though cash still will be accepted. And: Technology isn't the same as finger-printing (click 'See also').

Reporting $1.2 million in prepared food thefts, Virginia school district installs video cameras in cafeterias. Pocketing cookies, eating French fries before reaching the cashier are common, says official. Some parents skeptical about amount lost, citing inaccurate record keeping with their children's accounts; former student says most common theft is using another's account number for purchases.

As 75 percent of school districts prepare to raise lunch prices to offset rising costs of milk, bread, vegetables, nutrition directors worry that students won't have money to eat and that cafeterias will return to serving cheaper processed fare. Congress asked to to increase assistance and to make meals free for all students.

Trayless dining, which cuts food waste up to 50 percent and reduces water, energy use, catches on at universities.Then, there's pleasing the students: 79% of the 92,000 students surveyed this spring said they supported move. And: In Maine, colleges also compost, and buy in bulk (click 'See also').

New L.A. school chef, looking to please parent groups, the school board and students with food that is healthful, fast and cheap, starts with taste. 'What I'm here to do is to take the culinary and the hospitality world and the nutrition world and merge them. If I can't eat it, I can't serve it.' Among ideas: students' family recipes, dim sum, classroom room service.

Elephant breaks into elementary school pantry in India, and in 45 minutes, consumes enough rice, lentils, potatoes and salt to feed students for a month. Animal also broke 250 eggs. About 250 children attend the school, mainly on the promise of a good meal.

Loophole allows meat companies to move e.coli-contaminated meat found during processing into the 'cook only' category without telling USDA. Some inspectors say practice conceals higher levels of bacteria in packing plants than the companies admit. School lunch program bought 2.8 million pounds of cooked beef in 2006.

French chef shops for ingredients, then prepares lunch for about 800 students using no-waste practices - for $3 per student, per day. Such programs have helped France curb childhood obesity rates, studies show. Investing in students' well-being is act of citizenship, and will cost country's health care system less in future, chef says.

Debate over elementary-, middle-school lunch/snack restrictions halts vote for Illinois education board. The rules aim to curb obesity and encourage good choices; critics say that school districts should be in charge of such decisions.

After operating three years in the red, Washington state school district outsources baking of bread and pizzas and eliminates nine baking positions to cut food costs. As hours drop, employees are required to pay more for health benefits.

After four months of research and lessons on civic engagement, elementary students persuade principal to change school lunch policy that left them only 10 minutes to eat and no time to visit. As part of federally funded effort, children also met with lunchroom staff and classmates and presented their findings to crowd of teachers and parents.

Awareness, targeted actions could be creating plateau in rates of childhood obesity, but researchers can't be sure. Real question is whether 25-year obesity trend can be reversed, says researcher. 'The rates of obesity in children are so hugely high that without any further increases, the impact of this epidemic will be felt with increasing severity for many years to come.'

To cut costs, school lunch ladies buy in bulk, make their own salad dressings, nix packaged desserts in favor of seasonal fruits, reduce some portion sizes, consider increasing prices for lunch and 'a la carte' items and consider decreasing labor. Schools with more free or reduced lunch students fare better; they get 23 cents toward each paid lunch, $2.07 for each reduced lunch and $2.47 for each free lunch.

To pack a power lunch for kids, start with real ingredients and whole grains, and don't skimp on presentation, says Chicago chef, restaurateur and cookbook author. She sends her son the makings of pizza (he has use of a microwave at school), adds wheat berries to any salad, and turns a sandwich into a kebab on toothpicks.

High-fructose corn syrup off the ingredients list for dairy that supplies milk - plain and flavored - to about 100 school districts throughout Southern California. Syrup will be replaced by Hawaiian cane sugar and will reduce grams of sugar from 25 to 20.

Cooperative of farmers, ranchers, with $88,000 USDA grant, aims to reduce obstacles of getting local products onto school lunch trays. Co-op will act as order/collection/distribution center for up to 60 growers. Growers will be the sole shareholders; if project succeeds, it could be used as model. One ranch already sells kiwis at a loss because kids' response so encouraging; will join in hopes of turning a profit.

School lunch program, an already low-budget effort of mostly processed foods, struggles anew with increases in dairy and refined carbohydrate prices and relies on USDA's surplus meat and cheese. Reformers want Congress to provide more than $2.47 per lunch, and to make produce as cheap and easy to buy as tater tots.

Washington state's grants are modeled on a USDA program that provides produce and nutrition lessons to poor schools, including Pioneer Elementary, in Auburn.

Success of $570,000 in new grants that require Washington-grown produce for schools will hinge on distribution, price and devotion. In Olympia, parents led 2002 effort for local produce; food service director made commitment to farmers, and now all 18 schools participate.

Budget cuts doom program to provide free morning meals to Florida children attending schools where many students come from low-income households. The universal breakfast plan could have cost the state an estimated $9 million to $11 million annually.

Applications for free and reduced-price lunch increase as income drops. In Kansas City area, one in six now qualify, up from one in 10 eight years ago, with every school district showing increase in enrollment. To participate, a family's income must be below the poverty level or at about $37,000 for a family of four.

As prices for cattle, grain and dairy go up, New Jersey school food service director anticipates budget pinch in fall. Meanwhile, he finds better prices on fresh, not packaged foods, and eliminates packaged snacks in favor of more commodities: chicken nuggets, cheese and beans. State's new maximum prices for lunch: $2.75 in elementary school, $3 in middle school and $3.25 in high school.

Maryland legislators embrace farm-to-school bill that will provide nutritious fare, boost local farmers and trim fuel costs for long-distance shipping. 'I've seen kids get excited about beets and turnips and radishes because they pulled it out of the ground,' says coordinator. 'But if you hand a kid a beet and say, 'Eat this, it's good for you,' they say, 'Eww'.'

South Dakota expands participation in USDA's school lunch fruit and vegetable program. The program, awarded by grant, offers priority to schools with 50 percent or more students receiving free or reduced-price meals.

Citing love for their jobs, Alabama town's school lunch ladies repeat request for pay that, at minimum, meets 'basic needs' but superintendent says budget doesn't allow a raise. The workers prepare food and clean cafeterias during the school year but are paid over 12 months. Pay begins at between $8.77 and $11.77 per hour and is determined by the average number of meals served per hour.

Iowa parents push for more healthful fare for children's school lunch trays. They want more organic and local foods, fewer processed meats and fewer processed sweets. Food service director calls for 'reality check,' and predicts $4 or $5 lunches. But Washington state district chose to drop desserts and pay for organics with the savings.

Ever-rising prices of milk and grain-based products push schools into budget-mindedness - picking orange segments over grapes, for instance - and price hikes. A North Carolina district restores Yoo-hoo (36-cent profit on each sale) and full-fat cookies to menu (click 'See also). USDA reimburses $2.47 per free meal, up from $2.40 last year. In same time, milk prices went up 17 percent, bread nearly 12 percent.

Chef's old-fashioned, made-from-scratch cooking - salmon in panko crumbs, leek and potato soup, local fruits and vegetables - has made a Boston-area school lunch program self-supporting. In 10 years, sales have increased from $131,000 to $565,000 in the 1,300-student school system.

School battles students' disappointment and moans when they hire from-scratch food company that buys from local farmers and switches menus with the seasons, but the food won them over. It's important, says 10th-grader, to distinguish between junk food and food that's closer to home-cooked meals. 'It feels better to put healthy food into my system.'

South Carolina legislature kills bill that would have banned soft drinks, high-fat foods and minimally nutritious snacks from school lunches and campus vending machines. Sticking point was money: Some schools make as much as $70,000 annually from vending machine sales; refreshment stand fare sold at five home games made another school $13,000.

To change school lunches, reformers must build coalition that links child nutrition to agriculture, food policy, and social welfare, says Susan Levine, author on new book that explores National School Lunch Program. The endurance of this social welfare program, she says, hints at central role of food policy in shaping American health, welfare and equality.

Elementary school students became obese at half the rate of other children when intensive nutrition education program was implemented, Philadelphia study shows. Researchers replaced sodas with fruit juice, changed cafeteria fare, scaled back snacks, awarded raffle tickets for wise food choices and spent hours teaching kids, their parents and teachers about good nutrition - successfully subbing fruit salad for the typical bake sale.

Eating 'a la carte' items rather than school lunch decreased students' performance on standardized test in Michigan. Researcher blames less nutritious choices provided by food service contractors. Study also shows that once contracting fees were added, privatizing school lunches saved little or no money.

With Tennessee children ranking fourth-highest in obesity rates, legislature contemplates farm-to-school bill that would reduce red tape for local purchasing. 'All it takes is a child nutrition director and a farmer,' says advocate. But some school nutrition directors are reluctant. 'We're very satisfied with the program we have now,' says one school official of the mostly 'pre-prepared' lunches.

Twice yearly school cafeteria inspections are required of those participating in USDA National School Lunch Program, but only 16 percent of the schools in Contra Costa have received them. It's time for county health officials to take responsibility for putting those safeguards into place, and work with schools to determine who pays.

Enhanced learning is benefit to good diet in childhood, study finds. In test of 5,000 fifth-graders in Nova Scotia, students with an increased fruit and vegetable intake and lower fat intake were less likely to fail a standardized test. Findings back broader implementation and investment in effective school nutrition programs, authors say.

Chicken from Georgia, breadsticks from the Midwest, and hamburger from all over? Far-flung school lunch supply chain draws scrutiny after nation's largest beef recall and heightens interest in feeding Oregon's children food grown closer to home. Award-winning chef hired by state to link local farm fare to schools, though state doesn't fund school lunches.

School lunch ladies, parents' group in Massachusetts oppose takeover of lunches by Aramark, Whitsons, or Chartwells, saying it will cut jobs and lower food quality and service for Money loss problems began, they say, when officials replaced snack bar with vending machines. Parents' group cits Cambridge schools for its use of grants and farm-to-school programs.

Under pressure, USDA releases list of all school districts (click 'See also') that received tainted beef from nation's largest recall. Inclusion of district doesn't mean that all schools received the meat over two-year recall. Lawmaker promises legislation to force USDA to release list of retail stores that received recalled beef, too.

With many foods for school lunches gathered and shipped from around the country, rising fuel prices are pushing school lunch prices up, nutrition directors warn. Then there are the food prices: flour prices, for example, have tripled in a year. In cost-cutting measure, schools consider using frozen fruits and vegetables in place of fresh produce.

National Farm-to-School Program has grown to 2,000 programs in 39 states as farmers, educators and parents see benefits, though logistics can be onerous. Food service director contacts farmers regularly, teachers integrate foods into curriculum, students tend edible gardens and taste-test. Food on lunch trays underscores the message.

Idaho politicians urge higher standards for foods, drinks sold in schools and in vending machines on campus, and want schools to report on their progress. The House resolution takes aim at childhood obesity, diabetes and higher health care costs. Critic complains of meddling and predicts a day when strangers invade home kitchens, 'telling you what to feed your kid.'

Under threat of losing lunch funding and reimbursements, Massachusetts school district adds three supervisors to lead upgrades in quality and nutritional value of foods, menu planning and meal presentation, cleanliness of cafeterias, worker productivity and tracking customers of free and reduced-price lunches.

USDA seeks information on successes in farm-to-school initiatives, as well as barriers or difficulties to such programs for report it owes Congress. Director cites cooperative purchasing, local foods advocates and nutrition education as components of success; distribution and transportation as inhibitors.

Tennessee school district waits for reimbursement after replacing recalled beef distributed through the USDA National School Lunch Program to feed children. Meanwhile, its school board adds $502,500 to child nutrition budget to cover hike in food costs and increased enrollment.

Once pastry chef at Virginia's Inn at Little Washington, Jenna Ortner looks at school lunches and finds a calling. Now a 'lunch lady,' she serves locally grown produce to an even pickier clientele. Students were prepped by teacher who explained that food is fuel, and how fortunate they are to have a real chef; orders for the $3 fresh lunches are brisk.

Sick cows were killed illegally at Hallmark/Westland slaughterhouse, company executive tells Congress after he views the Humane Society video that filmed workers forcing 'downer' cows onto their feet for killing. Video led to nation's largest meat recall. A portion was sent to schools as part of the USDA's National School Lunch Program.

Washington state passes 'Local Farms - Healthy Kids' bill, reducing obstacles for schools to buy locally grown food and supporting farmers at the same time. The law also will provide technical assistance for new programs.

Children shouldn't have to pay the price for adults who don't pay for them to eat lunch at school, and schools' solution of feeding those children 'snack' lunches stigmatizes them. Better outreach is needed to enroll those who qualify for federally subsidized program. Strategies also are needed to help those who barely miss the mark, and to solve the $1.5 million deficit created by non-payments over the last four years at North Carolina district.

Problems with meat don't stem from one slaughterhouse, but beef recall is chance to re-think school lunch. The USDA buys millions of pounds of surplus beef, pork, chicken and other high-fat meat products to distribute to schools, and not enough fruits, vegetables and other plant-based foods. Report predicts that by 2010, nearly half our children will be overweight or obese. As diet-related disease takes hold, they run risk of being the first generation to have a shorter life expectancy than their parents.

Delays on tainted beef recall updates kept school lunch workers in the dark for days, and has led to questions on whether the federal government's alert system is adequate to keep unsafe food off cafeteria lines. In Texas, one school district waited 12 days for complete recall information.

USDA can't say how many schools are affected by Hallmark/Westland beef recall and can't account for about 10 percent of total. More than half of suspect meat became meatballs, patties and other items, or was mixed with other products and classified by type, not manufacturer. Recall, which has affected 45 states and D.C. schools, adds to perception that school meals are inferior, lunch lady says. Meanwhile, parents worry.

Contradicting USDA's assurances that Hallmark/Westland recall was 'isolated incident,' documents show problems with food safety in children's school lunches since at least 2003. School-lunch administrators and inspectors cited for weak food-safety standards, poor safeguards against e.coli and salmonella, and choosing vendors with food-safety violations (Hallmark/Westland has string of citations going back at least 10 years).

Congress must resist the USDA's undermining of the farm-to-school program. This local food initiative helps children develop eating habits that defend against diet-related disease. It supports all farmers, not just those who grow fruits and vegetables. The farm/food bill panel needs to respond to communities and schools with innovation in food purchasing programs 'to the maximum extent possible.'

Hillary Clinton says her administration would create a food safety net and give poor children 'greater access to healthy, fresh food.' She would launch effort to get junk food out of schools, and require schools to offer only food that meets or exceeds USDA standards. She would sign up more people for food stamps and expand benefits. The program would be paid for by toughening tax enforcement.

School lunch ladies (and men) gather to discuss lobbying goals, including funding for nutrition, requiring all foods sold at school to meet dietary guidelines, uniformity of nutrient standards, and giving USDA authority to regulate and enforce food and drink sales outside cafeteria. School lunch reimbursement is $2.47, less than a latte, says spokesperson.

Some students go hungry rather than face shame of separate lines for subsidized lunches. Two-tier system is mostly caused by USDA prohibition against selling food of minimal nutritional value in same place as subsidized meals. 'A la carte" items - pizza, turkey sandwiches, Caesar salad wraps, cookies - are sold, separately, to paying students. The National School Lunch Act prohibits segregating, 'or any overt identification of any child.'

Nearly 160 New Jersey school districts and some individual schools are listed as recipients of suspect beef from the USDA school lunch program. Products included taco meat, cooked beef patties, frozen steaks, meatballs and beef barbecue nuggets and were shipped from two Pennsylvania companies and one in Ohio. Schools given until March 12 to submit verification of destruction, either on-site, or at landfill or incinerator.

Concerned about childhood diabetes and obesity, California school district weans itself from USDA's frozen beef patties and plastic-wrapped cheese. It now makes lunch from scratch every day for all children who want it in the 9,000-student district. District has supplemented its federal lunch funds with $1 million from its annual $100 million budget.

USDA's bulk buys of ground beef and other meats from lowest bidders leave school lunch directors with no choice but to trust. But in a 1996 study on E. coli, researchers found that a single lot of beef at a large-scale commercial meat packer came from up to 11 sources in four states; in another case, meat possibly tied to a large, 1993 E. coli outbreak came from up to 443 animals from six states through five slaughterhouses.

Financial troubles likely to permanently close slaughterhouse caught in sick cow abuse video that triggered nation's largest beef recall. Hallmark/Westland Meat Packing, one of 10 companies that supply beef for school lunches, received $39 million from USDA in the last fiscal year as part of the program. Sick, or 'downer' cows may not be eaten because of link to mad cow disease, a fatal illness that takes up to 30 years to appear in humans.

On-campus stores that sold snacks and other goods at six New Jersey high schools close after Sodexho, school lunch provider, told district they were operating during lunch hours - a violation of 'no compete' law. District also cites NJ Model School Nutrition Policy. Sodexho provides lunch in 72 school districts in state; stores were operated by parent-teacher-student organizations.

Soaring food and fuel prices hit Sodexho-administered school lunch program in Florida. Parents told to expect price hike in both hot lunches, currently $1.50 to $1.75, and a la carte items for the 2008-09 school year. Sodexho's distributor, U.S. Foodservice, is estimating a 10 to 12 percent hike in overall food costs. USDA historically has increased reimbursement by 4 percent a year.

Parents look to stop Massachusetts school from soliciting proposals from outside school lunch providers. They cite concern over diminished food quality and an appreciation for 'lunch ladies' who care. Lunch program has run a deficit for years and has spent $125,000 more than it has taken in this year.

California advises schools to destroy some suspect beef after recall; state education office will refund cost. National School Lunch Program participants can pay as little as 10 cents per pound of USDA subsidized beef, with outside beef suppliers charging about $2 per pound. Some schools drop beef and buy chicken, turkey and cheese, hoping for reimbursement.

Hallmark/Westland Meat Company recalls 143,383,823 pounds of raw and frozen beef delivered to National School Lunch Program, Emergency Food Assistance
Program and the Food Assistance Program on Indian Reservations. Recall spans two-year period and was spurred by Humane Society video that showed slaughterhouse workers abusing sick cows.

Manager at slaughterhouse that supplied school lunch program faces felony charges of cruelty to animals after video shows torture of ailing cows. 'Downer' cows are prohibited from human food chain since failure to stand can be symptom of mad cow disease; schools nationwide pulled beef from lunch menus. USDA has launched investigation, but some members of Congress call for school food safety probe as well.

Delicious, nutritious school lunches and stemming money loss are reasons for switching from in-house program to lunch contractor, Washington, D.C., school chancellor says. One reason existing program lost $30 million in three years is because students won't buy bad-tasting food; another is that the District hasn't filed for federal reimbursement on free and reduced-price meals.

Citing video showing workers abusing sick cows at slaughterhouse that supplied school lunch program, lawmakers question whether government can protect students from dangerous foods. They call for independent investigation, saying that USDA has repeatedly failed to deliver timely information about food safety issues to schools and to parents.

Energetic dietitian takes on fruit-vegetable scarcity at Los Angeles public schools. She works with principals on logistics of crowded cafeterias and short lunchtimes; she introduces new foods through classroom cooking, math and science lessons so foods aren't unfamiliar when they appear at lunch. She's installed 60 salad bars - but who's counting?

Maryland considers farm-to-school program that includes a home-grown school lunch week, local farm trips and student-farmer interactions. Bill would require state to create database of farmers who want to sell produce to schools.

New Mexico legislation would help fund farm-to-school link and put more fresh, local foods on children's lunch trays; facilitate food distribution system for low-income and rural communities; and help fund farmers' market purchases by low-income seniors.

With 85 cents budgeted for each lunch at Oregon schools and dicey logistics of perishable fresh foods, cheap high-fat ground beef and chicken parts often star. Nationally, beef makes up 40 percent of the federal commodity purchases for school lunches, more than purchase of fruits and vegetables combined. Outdated federal rules require high calorie count, which favors processed products over fruits and vegetables, nutritionists say.

Supplier of meat to USDA National School Lunch Program suspended indefinitely after video shows Westland Meat Company workers repeatedly kicking possibly ailing cows and ramming them with forklift blades. Downed cows are prohibited from the human food chain; member of Congress threatens hearing on using school lunch program as dumping ground.

For documentary film maker, 'Two Angry Moms' grew from her interest in sustainability, food politics and integrative nutrition, as well as her marriage to French man and his family's obsession with food, the couple's launching of the first certified organic poultry operation on the East Coast and working with Chef Ann Cooper, Renegade Lunch Lady.

At less than half the dining room size mandated for its enrollment, cafeteria crunch for 915 middle-schoolers leaves some students eating too early, others eating too late and most if not all eating too quickly, administrators say as they lobby for $34.3 million construction project for their Arkansas school district.

In bid to keep students on campus for lunch and reduce afternoon absences that sometimes follow, Colorado high school installs full-meal vending machine and engineers text-messaging system for ordering restaurant meals for delivery by student volunteers.

After complaints to school board result in no action, Baltimore area middle-school students draw up Cafeteria Bill of Rights, demanding fresh fruits and vegetables at district's 57 schools that serve "pre-plate" food. Committee also asks that each school have its own cafeteria and kitchen staff. But officials face $50 million in cuts.

On road to better school lunches, grant helps Mississippi school districts buy fruit and vegetable slicers, and funds combi-ovens as alternative to fryers. Already, schools have eliminated sugary snacks and drinks. Next up: minimum PE time and wellness plans

Parents owe school districts about $60,000 for school lunches in three South Carolina counties. Officials hope that new computer system that accepts advance payments will solve cash-flow problem and reduce need to send notes home, withhold report cards or use collection agency.

Alarmed at his children's school lunches, nationally acclaimed chef leaves glamor behind to make public school lunches nutritious and delicious in Minnesota. Now he is drawing a bead on tater tots, winning pint-size customers over with roasted rosemary potatoes, and recommending power breakfasts of yogurt, fruit and peanut butter on toast.

Feeding needy students is part of National School Lunch Program, but study shows system is poorly monitored. The $8.2 billion program requires an eligibility form for free or reduced-price lunches, but conservatives suspect light scrutiny, since school funding is linked to poverty rates, and liberals suggest that reform would leave children hungry.

Boston-area public school with 5,000 students adds new kitchens and cafeterias, a food services director with an interest in health and wellness, and now, a chef. Her first goal is adding fresh produce, whole grains, and colorful entrees to cafeteria meals - without losing customers or raising prices.

North Carolina schools record children's food choices so parents can track cookies, brownies and ice cream they buy, but cafeterias won't halt sales of processed foods. With no local funds for school lunches and costs rising, nutrition director says those sales keep cafeterias from going broke.

Democrats' concerns about federal preemption of stricter state standards and Republicans' worries about restrictions on snack foods played into Senate's abandonment of amendment to its farm/food bill that would have limited processed, packaged snacks in public schools.

Since farm/food bill is as good for the American consumer as most of the confections in school vending machines, amendment to limit junk food in schools is a refreshing, yet flawed, start. New rules would limit drinks for elementary school students, allow diet drinks in high schools, and would give school districts authority to impose stricter rules.

Without politics and profit, all our children would receive nutritious and delicious school foods, their own schools couldn't sell them junk food, states could set organic and local guidelines, and children would learn the benefits of a diet rich with fresh, local fruits, vegetables, and whole foods.

Lawmakers consider national ban on high-calorie snacks for schoolchildren as amendment to farm/food bill. But food activists splinter as dream of removing vending machines collides with political realities of bill that exempts chocolate milk, sports drinks and diet soda.

Study finds that school lunch sales don't decrease with more healthful offerings. Labor costs are more and districts must train staff and upgrade kitchens, but those costs are offset by buying fruits and vegetables instead of processed foods. Also, policing practice of charging lunch programs for cafeteria electricity and janitorial services can reduce costs.

For vocal coalition of parents, nutrition advocates and physicians, Congress and its support of the farm/food bill is the prime obstacle to nutritious, delicious foods for school children and for those in military. With legislation stalled in Senate, group sees chance to push its anti-corn dog agenda.

School lunch tray becomes unifying symbol for farm-bill activists who support increase in fresh fruits and vegetables. Meanwhile, lobbying ramps up for longstanding subsidy recipients, including Tyson, which received $46 million in 2005 and produces cheese, meat and starches.

Though whole grains now are available in restaurants and even the military, schools, caught between a wellness revolution and a financial crisis, lag behind, with little control over labor, menus or budgets, food-oriented foundation reports.

When the fat gets cut and the fries aren't hot from the fryer, the students find alternatives to lunch at Los Altos High School; what they want, they say, is choice, but school officials can't match food truck's cheeseburger to federal guidelines for fat and calorie counts.

Memphis school lunch chief, who resigned after allegations of mismanagement and a one-year program loss of nearly $3.7 million, received nearly $8,800 in severance pay; official said it was the cheap and expedient solution.

As colleges evolve into new view of students as customers, cafeterias begin buying locally, thinking sustainably and replacing mystery meat with offerings like pesto-crusted pork loin and oven-roasted beef with black-pepper demiglace; at Bowdoin, if the food tastes like Mom makes, that's because it's Mom's recipe.

College, university cafeterias in Maine remove trays and see reduction in food waste; schools also institute buying locally, sending food waste to pig farms, composting scraps, buying in bulk and limiting seafood to species that are not vulnerable to overfishing.

Initiative to address children's needs begins with hunger relief in Iowa town after principal learns that student wasn't fed dinner for three nights in a row; poor nutrition diminishes cognitive and physical growth, and children who feed themselves lack ability to make good choices, expert say.

Obesity rates climb in 31 states, with no state showing decline in 2006; Mississippi, West Virginia and Alabama showed largest gains, and more children in Washington, D.C., are obese than anywhere else, according to CDC data analysis.

The farm/food bill, now in Senate, covers land conservation, food stamps, school snacks and foreign aid, but it's really about politics and money; House agriculture chair declares that advocates for change were pushing too hard, but Bush likely would veto its version.

Vermont school, working with local farmers and agricultural experts, plants garden designed to feed its 200 students homegrown vegetables at lunchtime, teaching a way of life, not only nutrition or fitness.

Government's subsidies to the very rich need to be addressed, but Congress should follow lead of the House in tending to nutrition needs of very poor around the world via the Food for Education program in the farm/food bill.

With federal quality standards for bottled water less stringent than they are for tap water and 2 million tons of polyethylene bottles trashed every year in U.S., it makes sense to fill a reusable bottle with filtered water at home, then pack it for work or school.

It's a $70 billion annual bill, and before, only agribusiness cared, but a tsunami of activists now believes that its subsidies for corn and soy encourage diet-related disease and climate change; instead, they advocate money for sustainable and organic food production, agricultural conservation and for a priority on fresh, local fruits and vegetables.